


Band Kids

by KiiroHeart



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe, Bullying, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-07-24
Updated: 2016-04-13
Packaged: 2017-11-10 14:23:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/467294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KiiroHeart/pseuds/KiiroHeart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dave Strider is the cool kid whose a DJ in his own band. John Egbert is a band geek. What would happen if these two kids meet? Homestuck AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My first story on AO3. It's not rated or having any warnings yet because it could have more mature things late in the story. Enjoy!

Your name Is Dave Strider and you’re the coolest kid in school.

You weren’t always this cool though. Or at least, it wasn’t shown. You were born cool and awesome, because you’re a Strider, but in your puberty days you were a real geek. You try not to reveal your past, since it would ruin your image. You used to be a band geek, like flutes and drums and all that shit. Back in your homestate, Texas, everyone would tease you. Until you moved to California, because your older bro got some sweet DJ-ing jobs. You’ve been living the high life ever since, but it’s not that fancy. You guys have some money, but you still live in a normal house and go to a normal high school.

You and your crew are the cool kids in school, and you guys even have your own band. Of course, you’re the DJ in the band, although at first the rest of the guys thought it was a pretty stupid idea. But your sick beats and their sweet tunes mix together to make music that make all the girls swoon. Maybe some guys too. But you wouldn’t tell your bro’s about that.

It’s the first day of junior year, and it’s the same it’s always been every year. You get classes with a bunch of stupid people because the teachers don’t think you can handle the classes you deserve. You want US History AP? You get the lowest possible US History class of all time. At least you get one class, Physics, but science isn’t your thing. Its okay, but you couldn’t keep a job with science in the future. 

You walk into your Physics class, which of course is the last period of the day, and find your assigned seat in the back corner, of course. You try to read the name of the dork who will sit next to you, but all the other kids are crowded around the single piece of paper with all of the assigned seats. You sighed as you make your way back to your seat, your head rested against the palm of your hand. You barely notice when he finally makes his way to the seat next to you, and when class finally begins.

“Okay class, the person who is assigned next to you will be your partner for the rest of the year. You will be doing all labs and projects with each other,” the teacher announced. You try to hide the low groan coming from your throat, but you try and glance at your ‘partner’. He’s average sized, with jet black hair that has a few curls, but for the most part, is pretty straight and styled. His baby blue button up shirt looks like it was just ironed this morning, and is finished with a fucking green bow tie. Who still wears bow ties nowadays? You glance at his backpack, which is the same colored blue as his shirt with a single button that has Ghostbusters ghost on it. And to finish it off, he has a flute case right next to his backpack. Of course, he’s a band geek.

You trail your eyes back up and notice he’s staring at you, but not in an ‘I caught you staring at me’ way, thank god for your shades. He pushed his glasses further up his nose and gave you a dorky smile, turning his body fully towards you.

“Hi there! I’m John Egbert. What’s your name?” He said cheerfully, his hands resting on his knees.

“Uh, I’m Dave. Dave Strider.” You mumble, turning your body towards him. You now notice that his posture is almost perfect; his back is straight and everything is almost vertical as if he meant his body to be like that. You look down at his long, slender fingers which mean he must be a piano player also. He plays instruments that involve his fingers and his mouth. You feel your face flush at the thought, and you try and look back at his face.

“So Dave, why do you wear sunglasses and stuff? Is your favorite color red since you have a red backpack and a red shirt? I’m guessing you like music too, since you have a record on your shirt. I like playing music too! Sometimes…” John continued to talk and ask you random questions, which you never answer. He never notices how you’ve been staring into his eyes the whole time. His eyes are sky blue, and with all the blue he’s wearing, they even pop out from behind his Ray-Ban like glasses. 

You soon hear the final bell of the day ring; it seems like it’s only been minutes since you first sat down. John leans down and grabs his things, and he gives you an accidental view of his amazing ass. Oh god, what are you thinking right now? First the instrument thought, now this. You see him about to leave when you jump up from your chair, rubbing the back of your neck.

“Hey, John. Maybe we can like, hang out or somethin’ one day? Like, lunch or after school. Whenever you have time, I mean..” Before you could go on with your rambling he turns towards you and gives you his goofy smile, including a small nod.

“It sounds great! We can meet for lunch tomorrow by the boys bathroom near the band room,” He turned away, looking back at you, “And I like your accent. It actually sounds kind of cute.” He walked towards the door of the classroom, leaving your sight. You blush lightly from his comment, grabbing your backpack and heading towards the door also. It looks like can get used to this kid.


	2. Chapter 2

Ever since the first day of school when you met your new friend, John Egbert, you’ve been sitting in the bathroom eating lunch every day for about a week. You’ve tried to convince him to get out of the bathrooms and try to make some other friends, but it isn’t happening. You’ve also tried to tell him to get a girlfriend, but he doesn’t seem the bit slightest into girls. But you aren’t going to ditch him, because he seems like one of those guys who would never stop being your friend. And you sort of have this small attraction to him.

You can’t really label yourself as gay, since you don’t really give a fuck about what gender you could fall in love with. You guess you learned that from your older bro, Dirk, since he always says the same thing when you ask him about sexualities. Even though he’s the type who would be totally and one hundred percent gay, he’s happy not giving a fuck about appearances. Just like you.

Today you were supposed to meet up with John in the morning, since you had to give him a present. It was only September and his birthday is in April, but you made a mix tape of some raps for him that you wanted to give him. It was pretty clear that they were love songs and could possibly about the dork, but you knew that he wouldn’t notice. You run down the stairs with your backpack in hand, stuffing the usual school supplies and the CD in it, rushing over to the table in the kitchen. You didn’t notice your bro anywhere, so you just grab a piece of toast that was sitting neatly in the middle of the table. As soon as you turn around, your tall brother is standing over you.

“What’s the rush, little man? You’re not going to eat breakfast with me? What happened to quality bro to bro time?” He grinned, ruffling your hair. You sigh as you drop your backpack on the ground next to the chair, sitting down as you take a bite of the toast that’s in your mouth.

“I need to meet up with someone.” You tried to say it as bluntly as you could, but your bro could see right past your mask.

“Is it that Egbert kid? I swear, it’s almost like you’re in love and it’s only been a week.” You blushed darkly in response to Dirk’s remark, fixing your hair to occupy yourself as he continued to talk. “Look, as long as my little bro is happy, then it’s alright. Just be sure he leans in your direction before you confess.” He got up from the table and walked away, disappearing almost immediately. You sighed as you got up from the table and rushed out the door, hurrying to school.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

It didn’t take you long to get to school, but you were worried when you didn’t see John over nearby the band room, like you guys agreed on where to meet. You looked at your watch as you waited for John to arrive, noticing there was still a long while until first period actually started. Just as you were about to sit on the ground, you notice John running up to you, trying his best to carry his flute case in one hand and an envelope in the other.

“Yo Egderp, where were you?” You grin, taking the flute case from his sweaty hand. He was panting heavily, bending over slightly when he was finally near you.

“I.. Thought I was going to be late to meet you and… For school.” He sighed, straightening himself up before letting out another heavy breath.

You just laughed, reaching into your backpack to take out the CD. “Dude, school doesn’t star for like, another 25 minutes. You’re fine. But, I made you this.” You hand him the mixtape and smile, something you only do for special people. Usually you give people a small grin or smirk, but for John, you always smile. He looked at the CD case and started to get excited, taking it in his own hand.

“Oh wow, thanks Dave! This is the best! And a remix of How Do I Live, my favorite song!” He smiled brightly, giving you a big hug. You roll your eyes under your shades, hugging him back lightly. John pulled away slowly, almost as if he was purposely trying to brush his lips against your neck. You blush lightly, until you heard a small chorus of snickers from behind you. You turn around to find your friends and bandmates smirking.

“Tho thith ith who you’ve been ditching uth for?” Sollux, the main guitarist who has a major lisp, smirked. Behind him was Eridan, the stuck-up bass player, and Gamzee, the stoner drummer. You growl under your breath, moving away from John.

“What, jealous? I knew you guys were gay for me. I was just giving my friend something.” You stare at Sollux for a few minutes before he looks away, turning back to the other guys.

“Well, when you’re done with your boyfriend over there, you know where we meet.” Sollux began to walk away, Gamzee and Eridan following behind him. You sigh, turning back to John, who was looking at the CD case.

“T-They think I’m gay? I-I mean, I’ve been in a relationship, but I don’t think I’m a homo-.” He tried to stutter, but you cut him off before he could finish.

“Look, just ignore them. If they give you crap, then tell me. I care about you, so don’t let them get inside your head, alright?” You managed to say, turning around to head towards your class. You couldn’t bear to hear your somewhat crush say that he’s not a homosexual. That’s like rejection, and Striders never get rejected.

You find out that during lunch on Wednesday’s, today, John has band during lunch period. Luckily its only for first semester, but that means you’ll be sitting alone during lunch. You could sit with your bandmates, but you have practice after school, so you’d rather wait then to confront them. Finally, it became sixth period Physics and you can talk to John about this morning. He seems like himself, but you decide to let it be unless something comes up. You begin to scribble doodles in your notebook while the teacher gives a lecture, until John nudges your arm slightly.

“Hey, Dave? Do you think I’m a homosexual?” He whispered, turning his head towards you. It was almost pitch black in the room, but his eyes that make you melt are easy to see in darkness.

“What? Well, you sorta seem like it sometimes.” You shrug, going back to your sketches. You both stay quiet for a few minutes, until John speaks again.

“Are you gay, Dave?” You freeze suddenly, until you look up at him.

“I don’t give a fuck about whether I love girls or guys. Does that answer it?” You stare at John for a few minutes before he gives you his goofy smile, scratching the back of his neck.

“Yeah I guess it does.” He smiled, looking back towards the front of the room. You’re about to go back to drawing until he speaks again. “I guess I sorta feel like that too. And, hey, maybe I’ll know officially once I actually start dating.”

You just smile down at your notebook, not really paying attention for the rest of class. Maybe, this could actually work out, if you plan it right. You just have to make sure that your friends don’t get in the middle of it. Hopefully, they just won’t say anything at the afterschool band rehearsal.


	3. Chapter 3

You walk into the garage of your bandmate Eridan, who's already inside with Gamzee and Sollux. Unfortunately, Eridan's douchey brother, Cronus, is hanging around with his usual cigarette in his mouth. You've always hated smoking and drinking alcohol, mostly because you would never risk showing more than the typical poker face that you normally have and who the fuck would want to have a messed up face and body from that stuff. The band is already set up and waiting patiently, looking at you pissed off. "W-Where the fuck havve you been?" Eridan grumbled. You set your bag down by the torn up couch, which you've always been afraid to even sit on because, well, it's an Ampora couch. Who knows what has happened on that thing.

"Probably with his new boyfriend." Gamzee laughed huskily, banging his drumsticks against his leg. You can tell he's done his drugs within the last ten minutes, whether it's pot or meth you never know.

"Shut the fuck up, Makara. Like you've never wanted dick." You snapped, moving towards the mic in the center of the room. You see Gamzee shrug, which is basically his version of a ‘touché’. "Can we just get started? I have some shit to do, unlike you guys." The guys just look at you with a shrug, before you began to practice. It went on like that for a couple of hours before you and the rest of the guys took a break. You took a look at your phone and noticed that you got a new message from Egbert.

\-- ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] --

EB: hey dave!

EB: i was wondering if i could come over after your band practice to study.

EB: only if it's okay with you and your bro.

TG: yeah its ok

TG: i wont be home for like 20 minutes so

EB: oh well i'll just wait in front of your apartment then.

TG: whatever

TG: not my fault if my pedo neighbor kidnaps you and makes you do some pornos

TG: or that might be my bro

EB: dave!

TG: thats exactly what you will be shouting when they kidnap you 

TG: see you there pedo bait

\-- turntechGodhead [TG] ceased pestering ectoBiologist [EB] --

"Aw, do you have a date, Thrider?" You got up and headed towards the door, ignoring the comments from Sollux and the other band members. You rode your skakeboard to your apartment, and just as you thought, John was sitting next to the door on the ground against the wall. He looked up and you and smiled, quickly getting to his feet. He had his backpack with him and some books in his hand, which you grabbed from him.

"Hey, you didn't have to grab those from me. I'm not that weak.." John whined, following you into the apartment once you unlocked the door. You smirked to yourself when he wasn't looking, leading him to your room. You both entered the messy room, and you heard John let out a small laugh from behind you. "This place is a mess, Dave."

"You couldn't tell from the rest of the house?" You set the books down on the desk and moved some other crap away to make some space, letting out a small sigh. "Alright, so what are we supposed to do now?" You look over at John, who's already laying down on your bed and reading one of his textbooks. He has his leg propped up so the book leans against it, giving you a small view of his package in his tight jeans. God damn it.

"I didn't think you would actually study with me, but if you really want to, we can." John looked over at you and shrugged, flashing a small smile. Thanks to your shades, you've been staring at his crotch the whole time until he spoke, which you then shifted your eyes over at him. You take into consideration if you should actually make a move or tell him how you feel, but do you actually want to risk losing his friendship? You haven't really had a real friend like John before, and your douchebag friends in your band are alright, but they wouldn't talk to you after high school. You walk towards the bed slowly and sit down on the edge, fumbling with your own fingers. Wait, when have you ever done this before? 

"Hey, Egbert." You let out a small sigh, glancing over at him through your shades. "So I'm taking this survey or whatever, for math or whatever. If your best bro had a crush on you, how would you respond?" 

You notice John growing a light red blush across his cheeks, stuttering his speech. "W-Well I... It would depend, you know? If I actually liked him. If I didn't, I would let him down gently, telling him we would still be friends. But if I did like him back... I guess I would want to be his boyfriend." 

"So if it was someone like me, you would like him?" You said to yourself quietly, luckily he didn't hear you. You clear your throat before trying again, looking straight at him. "John. Close your eyes. I have to give you something."

John looked at you curiously, placing the book beside him and sat up with his legs crossed. His mouth moved as if he was about to say something before he pressed his lips tightly together, closing his eyes. Here was your chance. You sat on your knees and face him, staring straight at his closed eyes. You didn't know what to do. Should you carress his face? No, that would give it away. You decided to just lean in slowly, before you couldn't handle it any longer. You pressed your lips against his, and you felt like you were in heaven.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I finally got to put up the next chapter! I was putting it off and then my computer broke, so I'll be posting more chapters now that it's fixed.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> davejohn makeouts yay merry after christmas

You felt like you could just stay like this forever. You didn't really think that it would be this great, kissing your best bro. Your lips stayed pressed to his for a few seconds until you felt him kiss back. When you pulled away, you swore you heard a small whine come from him. He opened his eyes and stared at you, a small blush appearing across his cheeks. "D-Did you just kiss me, Dave?" He stuttered, but you knew what would come next. He'd probably storm out, never talking to you again and you would hate yourself. The part you didn't understand was why he kissed back, unless he was in utter shock like you were.

You glanced down at the bed and let out a small sigh. "Yeah.. I'm sorry. I just really like you, John. If this is too weird, I wouldn't care if you left." He let out a small laugh and hugged you tightly, and you could feel his face pressed against your neck. 

"Dave, don't be a dork. I like you too." He left a small peck on your neck before nuzzling his face into you, making you blush darkly.

"I'm not a fucking dork. I'm cool."

"Is that really what you took from that sentence?" He pulled away and looked at you, before he pressed his lips to yours. You could tell he was really trying, but he was inexperienced. You, on the other hand, had experience kissing girls and making out. You had never kissed another boy before John, but that doesn't mean you don't know what you're doing. Your tongue slid across John's bottom lip lightly, who gives you a small moan in response. Using that opportunity, you move your tongue inside his mouth. You rub your tongue against his and he groans loudly. He tries to do the same and move his own tongue into your mouth, but it just ends up getting saliva all over your lips.

You move your hand up to his cheek to help keep you two close together and you rub his tongue again, having the other boy retreat back to his own mouth. You begin to explore his mouth, moving your body closer to his. He groans as you grind into his hips, and you thank god that he's wearing these skinny jeans. You're about to move him back on the bed until you heard a door close, and you quickly pull away from John. "Fuck, that's my bro."

John sat up and looked at you, biting his lip gently. "Well, I doubt he'll come up here. I mean, your apartment is really big, so I'm sure he would start looking somewhere else." You roll your eyes and kiss his lips gently, getting up from the bed.

"Not if you're moaning so loud that the apartment across from us can hear. Now come with me." You hold out your hand and take John's, who's blushing darkly. You walk him out of your room and look side to side for any sight of your bro. You let out a small sigh until you heard a deep voice. 

"Boo." You let go of John's hand and look to your right, noticing Bro standing next to the staircase. He's grinning at you, pushing his stupid anime shades farther up your nose. "I see you have a friend over. This must be John. I've heard soooooo much about you. Dave practically swoons over you."

John blushed at the comment, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well it's nice to meet Dave's brother!" 

"Yeah. Stay as long as you want. But if you're gonna have a sleepover, you better use a condom.'' Bro smirked at you, going back down the stairs. You let out a small growl, grabbing John's hand as you move towards the stairs. You walked him to the door and he kissed your cheek lightly.

"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" He was about to leave the apartment, but your hand tugged on his before he could move. "What's wrong?"

"J-John." You mumbled to yourself, glancing down at the ground. "Do you wanna be my boyfriend?" 

"Of course! I thought we already were, but that would be great." John smiled and hugged you before pulling away, giving you a goodbye kiss. He left the apartment, and you turn back towards the stairs until you hear a small cough. You see your bro standing in the kitchen, smirking at you as usual.

"So I guess we don't need that coming out dinner and introducing me to the boyfriend thing, huh?" You find a nearby smuppet and throw it at Bro as he hides his face. He lets out a deep laugh, moving towards the fridge. "Kidding, kidding. You know I love you, little man."

"Love you too." You grumble, heading back up the stairs. You walked back into your room and noticed John left his backpack on your bed. You decided to go through his binder and check out what homework he had left, and if it was easy enough then you would just do it for him. But there wasn't anything he had to do; you should have known. You laugh to yourself, deciding to get started on your own homework.

\---

It was the next morning and you decided to go to school early. You had to wait outside in front of the band room for John to get here, but luckily you were able to beat the cold with your leather jacket. Not long after you get to school, you notice John running up to you. The only thing he was carrying was his flute case, so he didn't look as goofy as he does when he has his backpack with him. You see that he isn't wearing a jacket either, and his skin is almost snow white from freezing himself.

"Dude, why don't you have a jacket? You're gonna freeze." You hand him his backpack, which he takes and smiles at you breathlessly. 

"I couldn't find my blue hoodie, and the only shirt I had clean was this short sleeved shirt. But hey, it's red! Your favorite color." He let out a small laugh, rubbing his arms quickly. You give him a small smile and take off your jacket, handing it to him. He hesitated, but finally took it and put it on himself. "Thanks, Dave. Do you wanna go hang out somewhere?"

You nod at him and hold out your hand. You normally wouldn't want to show the PDA, especially with another guy. But John is pretty special, and who the fuck cares if some dudes make comments. John smiled at you and took your hand, and the both of you walk into the quad area. Everyone was at one of the stone tables, and you could tell which group they belonged to by what they looked at. Usually you either sat with your bandmates by the music rooms in a corner that teachers barely notice, and it was also where stoners and other music people hang out. Whenever you want to be alone, you go to a small area next to the bathrooms not too far from that area. It's where you and John both sit at lunch and where you sit to get peace from the stoners.

John sets his stuff down on the ground when you both finally get over to that spot and looks up at you. "So are you really okay about the public affection? Won't your friends and other people get mad?"

"If two girls can have sex in the library then I think it's okay if we kiss and hold hands." You watch his face go into horror, but you laugh and wrap your arms around his waist. You kiss him gently and smile against his lips. You moved your hands to his stomach and tickle him lightly, grinning as you watch him laugh. He tries to keep it in as the two of you kiss, but he ends up moving away and leaning against the wall.

"D-Dave!" You stopped tickling him and kissed his nose. You were about to go in for another hug and maybe a quick makeout session until you saw John looking behind you. You thought it might have been a teacher checking up on the two of you, but your thoughts were dismissed when you heard the loud snickering behind you.


	5. Chapter 5

You didn’t need to turn around to tell who was laughing at the two of you behind your back. The small choruses of snickers were enough. Before you could make a snarky comment, something hit your leg almost hard enough to knock you down, but you stood your ground with your back to the group. “W-What do you think you’re doin’ w-with this freak, Strider? Hav-ven’t you had enough of your nerdy days?” The voice growled lowly, and you could make out that it was Eridan by his speaking mannerism. It was easy to tell the band was gathered here to make fun of you, and the two other laughs vertify it. You aren’t surprised that they know about when you were a geeky junior high band kid, since you barely remember when your so called friends asked Bro about it. Unfortunately, they always bring it up in some way to torture you with your past puberty. 

You turn to face the trio with your usual poker face, and they just continue to laugh at you. Sollux finally speaks up, wiping his eyes from behind his glasses. “Come on, Thrider, you gotta be kidding. You can’t go out with thome doofus like thith guy! And a guy, even. Should we be worried?” You clenched your fists tightly, and you felt like you were going to punch him for what he just called John. Something touched your shoulder and you turn to see John frowning up at you, his books and backpack in hand. 

“C’mon, Dave. I don’t want a fight to happen and for us to get in trouble. Let’s just leave..” He mumbled softly, pulling you past the guys. Gamzee walked in front of him before he could get anywhere, the clown’s arms folded across his chest.

You all heard the first bell ring, and you let out a small smirk. “Sorry guys, don’t wanna be late for class. You know Dr. Scratch will be pissed seeing us ditch. And we all don’t wanna be in that office.” They let you and John pass, but the three of them still bump their shoulders into you both. Once the two of you got into the building, you kissed John’s forehead gently. “I’m sorry about this. It’s only our first day of being together, and you’re already getting hated for it.”

The shorter boy let out a small laugh, adjusting his glasses with his finger. “Hey, this isn’t the first time I’ve been teased. And as long as we’re together, it shouldn’t matter right?” He leaned up and kissed your lips gently, and you both separate when you hear the second bell ring. You say your goodbyes for the morning and head off to your class, your worries easing quickly.

 

News went by fast, and before you knew it, everyone was talking about you and John. Only one other time has happened where gossip went viral this quickly, and it wasn’t as bad as this. The last time a rumour popped up were when someone spotted your close friend Rose Lalonde and her girlfriend Kanaya Maryam kissing in the library. Ever since, they had been known as the school’s ‘lesbians’, and were always teased by other girls. Usually guys comment about the two of them, but it’s never as much as girls making fun of them. You’ve known Rose since you were a little kid because Bro and her mom were close friends. It wasn’t until high school when you actually started to attend school with her, but you always saw her on holidays and during summers as a kid.

She confronted you during your 4th period class while you were working on some US History thing. She turned around from her seat that was in front of you, resting her head on her palm. She was smiling at you as usual, but her purple eyes were sympathetic which could only mean where the conversation was going. “So, I heard about your predicament. Maybe I could concur?” As Rose spoke, Kanaya moved to the seat next to her, leaving a small kiss on the blonde girl’s cheek.

“Rose, can you not talk with such a prestigious vocabulary? This is some real shit goin’ on here.” She rolled her eyes at you, letting out a small sigh. You took this to advantage and began to speak again before she could interrupt. “Look, I don’t know why this is a big deal. There are so many gay kids here, but me, John, you and Kanaya are the only ones who do PDA and shit while getting teased.”

“David, I know it’s going to be hard for awhile, but the only thing you can do is to ignore them. It was easier for Kanaya and I since we were verbally abused, but since you two are guys, it might get more…” She hesitated for a moment, avoiding any eye contact, “..Physical and violent. And it’s already starting to happen.”

You froze, almost feeling like you were going to faint. It’s already getting violent? Nothing’s been happening to you except a few whispers and laughs, but you haven’t even seen what’s been going on with John. “Rose, you have to tell me what’s happening. I can’t let him get hurt, he’s not strong enough to take care of himself.” 

She glanced back at you, then over at Kanaya. “I wasn’t the one who witnessed it, but I suggested that you both have someone with you at your side. I was going to speak to some of our friends, but it was already too late.” Now it was really getting fucking scary. Did he get injured really badly? Is he in the hospital? Why haven’t you been told about this? Kanaya clears her throat, turning towards you.

“A few male students were bullying John before this class. On my way here, I saw him getting beat up nearby his locker. The fighting left a lot of bruises, even a cut on his face. When the bell rang, I watched him run into the bathroom.” She looked away from you and back to Rose, who was already getting her purse together for lunch. It was good that John had his free period at this time so he could stay in the bathroom, but you were seriously going to beat up whoever did this. You and the two girls part ways when class was over, and you headed to the bathroom where you guessed John went into. It was empty inside, since the bathroom was always hidden by lockers and no one used this one. It was the same one that you would sit with John and eat lunch since there really wasn’t anywhere else to go.

You were about to leave until you heard a small sob, coming from the stall at the very end of the row, and you practically run over. You swung the door open and see John curled up in the corner of the handicapped bathroom, some toilet paper pressed against his cheek. He had his glasses off, which had some blood and tears over them. You locked the stall and sat in front of him, cupping his noninjured cheek. “John? Who the hell did this to you?”

“T-Those guys…From this morning..” He gasped in between his words, trying not to cry even more. You wipe away his tears with your shirt sleeve and smiled down at the boy. You needed to just stay with him, even though you seriously wanted to pound those stupid douchebags. You puIlled away the toilet paper from his cheek and looked at the injury, a small gash across his cheek that could easily be from the metal of the lockers. He had a faint black eye, but luckily nothing too serious. He was about to begin crying again, but you climb into his lap and kiss him gently. His kiss was gentle, but needy at the same time. Blood came from his lips and you could taste the metallic from his cracked lip. You pull away from him and wipe the blood off, kissing his forehead gently.

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m here now, and you don’t have to worry. Starting from now on, we’re going to get you some body guards.” He was about to object until you put a finger to his lips, quieting the boy. You didn’t know what else to do at that point, but there was one thing that might make him happy. You know that he had at least wondered about it at some point in your friendship, so might as well get it over with. You slid your sunglasses off slowly, revealing your bright red eyes to the boy underneath you.

He smiled gently and looked up at you, letting out a small laugh. “Your eyes are amazing.” He kissed you lips lightly, light enough so his dried up blood from his lips barely touched yours. You smile back at him and move next to him, and John laid his head on your shoulder. Lunch would be over soon and you would both have to go back and face everyone, but you both sat there in silence and enjoyed the peaceful moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally was able to get this chapter up after being so busy with studying for midterms! Also I started a fanfic on tumblr that I'm posting below but feel free to just ignore it if you want, haha. Anyways, thanks for reading!  
> http://awkstheturtle.tumblr.com/tagged/genderstuck


	6. Chapter 6

Your name is John Egbert and today really was not your day. 

The past day or so went by so fast to you and the more you tried to think about it, the more it hurt. It probably didn’t help that you hurt everywhere, but you tried your best to not think about that. In just a day, you went from becoming your friend Dave’s boyfriend, to getting picked on by his friends that next morning, then those same friends beating you up. There was a small moment though of happiness when Dave came to check on you, but that actually didn’t last long either. Before lunch had ended, Dave helped you to the main office so your dad could pick you up early from school and he even waited with you until your dad drove up to the front of the school. You remember before you could even get a word in or a goodbye, Dave interrupted you with just one sentence.

“Everything will be okay, don’t worry,” he said with a small smile, and left to go back to his class.

It wasn’t hard to figure out what he did when you left, since it was all that your band friends would text you. Apparently, Dave had started a fight in between classes with his friends, which ended pretty badly. You wanted to check on him, considering he was probably facing some bad punishment from the school for starting a fight with his three friends, but you knew he would be okay. If anything, he would just tell you to concentrate on getting better. 

You couldn’t really concentrate on getting better either, since you were worrying about your dad too. During your car ride together, you would constantly glance to him but you can’t get that much of a good read on him. He was concentrating on driving, except for the times when he would change the channel on the radio. You weren’t sure how the conversation would go when you two would get home, but at least it wouldn’t be filled with anger. Even when you two did get home, there wasn’t much conversation. 

It was mostly silence up to this point, with you on the couch resting and your dad in the kitchen. He’s probably thinking of all of the ways he could approach this, you thought. You were a little tired of this silence, and to be honest, just a little too tired in general, so you got up and headed towards your dad. He was hunched over something that was on the counter, but as soon as you moved closer to look, he turns toward you with something in his hand. He was holding out a plate with a slice of cake on it. 

“Really, Dad?” You sigh, taking the plate and leaning against the counter. “Maybe we could have been talking about today instead of you having to slave over a cake for me.”

“I was already baking it as a surprise for you, but I was hoping it would at least give you a smile,” he walked to one of the chairs nearby and sat down, taking off his fedora. Your dad never really took off his fedora, except for when something was serious, and you could tell this was serious.

You sat next to him, leaving the plate on the counter. “I’m sorry, Dad. This won’t happen again, probably. Those kids will probably leave me alone now and I’ll try to defend myself next time-“

Your dad stopped you in the middle of your sentence; hugging you so tight it was starting to hurt. You never like seeing your dad be so sad, so you hugged him back in hopes that he would feel better than you did. It took a few minutes for him to pull away and put his fedora back on, giving you a small nod. 

“John, I just want you to know how much you mean to me, okay?” He patted your shoulder gentler than the hug. “I’m glad that you called me to come and get you, before something worse happened to you. If something like this keeps happening, or you want to talk about anything, I’m here.”

“I know, Dad,” you reply, standing up from your seat. “I think I’ll go upstairs and get some sleep.”

Your dad gave you another nod as you headed upstairs, slow but as quick as you could. Despite wanting to get some sleep, you really just wanted to talk to Dave and check on him. You wanted to hear his voice and make sure he was okay, so you dialed his number and flopped down on your bed. You listen to ringing which was a little bit longer than you wanted, but it didn’t matter much when you heard a grumbled “hey” from the other end.

“Dave! Geez, you sound terrible. I hope a few hours by yourself wasn’t too much to handle without me.”

“Oh ha ha, Egbert, it’s not like you were in my classes anyway.” You smile, hoping he was doing the same on the other end. There was a silence for what felt like forever, until you spoke up.

“Hey Dave… I think we should talk about today. Seriously talk about it, and talk about us.”

You heard him chuckle on the other end and mumbling, “Wow, it’s only been a day, has this been really sucky for you?”

Panic rose as you tried to think of an appropriate response. “No way, you know I didn’t mean that! I just meant…”

“It’s cool, it was just a joke. Today was stressful, but it was one day. That’s how we’ll take it, just one day at a time.” His reply was soft and calm, just like how you’ve always seen him. But then you wondered, what was he like during his fight today? Did he lose that cool because of what happened to you?

“Yeah… You’re right. I think we should take this one-day at a time. I think…” You paused, trying to find the right way to say what you wanted. “I think we should /really/ take it one day at a time. Take our relationship slowly. Maybe then this won’t happen again.”

You figured the silence was from Dave thinking about this, but it gave you anxiety. You didn’t want it to be a rejection, but you didn’t want something bad to happen. It wouldn’t be an end, just time. You heard him take a deep breath on the other line, which made you smile a bit.

“We may be taking it slow, but you better expect a Strider at your door tomorrow.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh wow, it's been 3 years since this was updated?? that was longer than i wanted.
> 
> i had planned on updating it like i normally did, but then i hit a really rough point in my life and i lost track of writing. thankfully i remembered what i wanted to happen next, so this chapter is exactly what was supposed to happen in the story three years ago. 
> 
> also, today's the last day homestuck updated (at least, before an epilogue) and the end of the comic inspired me to continue stories i was really excited to write, like this one. i also started another fanfic, always together, about a year ago inspired by what was happening in homestuck at that time. but then i got really discouraged because i felt like i forgot how the characters were since i wasn't in the fandom as actively as i was before. 
> 
> even though i still don't know how in character or out of character they will be in this story or my other one, i still want to finish them because i did like the direction i was going in. i also want to write more stories and practice my creative writing again because i haven't done it in so long. also for this story, i might make it into third person, but i would love to hear what you guys like (if you like how it is now or third person). anyway, i hope you enjoy this chapter and continue to read it, along with anything else i post!
> 
> happy 4/13 everyone!! :0


End file.
